Sheepdogs keep classic rock wagging on Changing Colours

From left, Jimmy Bowskill, Ewan Currie and Ryan Gullen of The Sheepdogs perform on the Fred Anderson Stage at Del Crary Park as part of the Peterborough (Ont.) Musicfest free summer concert series. The Saskatchewan rockers played hits, including, I Don't Know, Feeling Good and Downtown, and for their encore, Whipping Post by the Allman Brothers Band.Jason Bain / Jason Bain/The Examiner

The Sheepdogs’ new album, Changing Colours, doesn’t suggest the Saskatoon, Sask., rockers have learned any new tricks. But the 17-song record most certainly presents the veteran band in more shades than any of its previous releases.

From the Santana vibe of The Big Nowhere to the Love-styled I’m Just Waiting for My Time, the quintet is working other muscles than the straight-ahead prairie boogie.

It appears that they’re going to San Francisco Bay, circa 1967, complete with flowers in their hair. The album cover even features some psychedelic fonts and a design that says it’s the late ’60s or ’70s. Be that as it may, singer/guitarist Ewan Currie insists that there was no specific destination when the group entered the studio.

Sheepdogs cover.VSUNwp

“It’s no secret that we’re pretty into the esthetics of the music of the ’60s and ’70s right down to classic fonts, sounds, and we do try to make things thematically make sense,” said Currie. “That’s held true to some degree … with all of our records. But this time, it really was a lot more colourful and that’s reflected in the cover, in the promo reel, the merch for the tour and so on.”

As he has just been signing off on the vinyl remasters of both 2007’s Trying to Grow and 2008’s The Sheepdogs’ Big Stand, Currie is well-aware that there are big differences to be found in that fondness for the classics. The band’s earlier material was decidedly more rock.

“Yeah, it’s leaner, meaner and more direct when compared to the new record, which is really fleshed out,” he said. “For sure the big difference would be that, at this stage in our careers, I’m not as concerned about getting that radio hit. With more than that hit-riff in mind, I can dig into the harmonies more, into the guitar interplay and — overall — find more subtlety.”

With titles such as I’ve Got a Hole Where My Heart Should Be, I Ain’t Cool and I’m Just Waiting for My Time, the question of whether some major heartbreak or life-changing events occurred during the writing of Changing Colours arises. To some degree, the songs are about life-stage re-evaluation.

“It’s not due to some major breakup or loss of a loved one, but more about how my life was being put aside to keep to that relentless cycle of record, release, tour, return, make another record, repeat,” he said. “Getting a bit older, you start to realize that there might be more to life than that cycle.”

Changing Colours also celebrates the arrival of lead, rhythm and pedal steel player Jimmy Bowskill to the permanent ranks of the group. The solo blues rocker joined in November 2015, one month after the album, Future Nostalgia, dropped. Without a doubt, his skills are evident all over the new album, particularly the sashaying twang of his pedal steel work on songs such as Cherries Jubilee or his lead work on heavier tracks such as Kiss the Brass Ring.

Bowskill even has his own tribute in the instrumental, The Bailieboro Turnaround, named after his hometown in Ontario.

“That was an idea I had with a bit of a Nashville Skyline flavour that I originally worked up on acoustic and then had Jim come in to help with it,” said Currie. “I really hate the way that Canadian artists so often pretend they are from Nashville or whatever, so I decided we should name it after a place in Canada and as a homage to Jim.”

Since being the first unsigned band to make the cover of Rolling Stone in 2011, the Sheepdogs have proudly represented its Saskatchewan origins and avoided trying to “sound southern” to gain greater appeal. With a sound that is equal parts the Guess Who and Humble Pie, the combo is clearly Canadian without having to iron-on the Maple Leaf on its amplifiers.

While the three-time, Juno Award-winning group is certified platinum and gold in its homeland, it’s also building a steady following across the U.S. The band just toured Europe in the fall. Currie says that was an interesting run and that the continent isn’t as open-minded as is often reported.

“We’ve done some really specific rock festivals playing with groups like Smashing Pumpkins, which have been good, but then we’ve also run into some walls in places like Germany,” he said. “They really love heavy music there like Rammstein or old power rock like Scorpions. It’s not so easy to find a place to fit in.”

So they just keep on doing what they do best, performing with passion and making sure the music sings. Six albums in, the choice of what to put in the set list and what to leave out is something that the band is trying to figure out before the upcoming two-night-long stand at the Commodore Ballroom.

“Obviously, we operate on the idea that people will want to hear what they know from the radio,” said Currie. “But one of the good things about these new streaming services is that you can see what songs people are listening to the most and we’ve been quite surprised at which ones turn out to be amongst our top listens. Ryan Gullen, our bass player, is always looking for ways to reach out on social media and he might fire out some requests for suggestions in the set.”

The main thing is that people are happy with what they get to hear at the concert. The Sheepdogs don’t make any bones about why they’re where they are.

“Look, I don’t really believe anyone is honest when they say they just play for themselves,” he said. “Because I don’t think that’s why you get up onstage in front of an audience. Not to discourage what a brilliant songwriter he is, but I haven’t meant anyone who spoke glowingly about a Bob Dylan show in the last 25 years.”

True words indeed, as anyone who has suffered through the meandering, self-absorbed excuses for a performance that Dylan has inflicted on paying customers can admit. To each their own, it seems.

The Sheepdogs intend to have everyone leaving the venue with their tails wagging.

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